East Zone ended a 13-year wait for the Duleep Trophy title after securing a decisive victory over South Zone at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The Ishan Kishan-led side posted 708 runs on the board in the first innings, which was more than enough for the team to secure the title. The captain himself led by example, scoring a stunning double hundred, while Kumar Kushagra scored 101 and Shikhar Mohan added 85.
In reply, South Zone posted only 336 runs, allowing East to take a mammoth lead of 372 runs. Ace pacer Mukesh Kumar claimed three wickets, while Mohammed Shami, Md Kounain Quraishi and Shikhar picked two each.
East Zone interestingly chose not to declare early despite a significant lead in the first innings. They continued to bat and added another 388 runs before finally calling their innings on Day 5 of the match. With the bat, Kishan added 80, proving his mettle in red-ball cricket. The innings also produced a landmark first-class hundred for Kounain Quraishi.
The all-rounder remained unbeaten on 116 from 189 deliveries, striking 13 fours and four sixes. His partnership with Anukul Roy, who scored 64, pushed East Zone’s overall lead beyond 700. South Zone bowlers, in the meantime, had an extremely rough outing. None of their plans worked in the middle and the return of star pacer Mohammed Siraj couldn’t benefit them at all.
The bowlers were stretched by the workload as well. They sent down 99.2 overs in the second innings after bowling 163 in the first. Tripurna Vijay ended up as their leading wicket-taker in the final, claiming five wickets across innings.
Captains shook hands after East Zone’s declaration
East Zone’s declaration on Day 5 left South Zone with no opportunity to overturn the first-innings deficit. Hence, the captains shook hands before East Zone were confirmed as champions.
Once the match was decided, Kishan and Sooryavanshi joined the celebrations with stumps in their hands, dancing on the field as East Zone completed their first Duleep Trophy triumph since the 2012-13 season. Also, with the batting show, Kishan has sent a strong message that he is ready for a Test call-up.
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